


summer of 1999

by fairyzhengting



Category: NINE PERCENT (Band), 偶像练习生 | Idol Producer (TV)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, M/M, Summer Love, missing zhengyi hours
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:48:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26839978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fairyzhengting/pseuds/fairyzhengting
Summary: "they were like astro twins, unable to part from each other. an untold love story, a summer too short for ziyi's liking.summer of 1999, wang ziyi realizes that zhu zhengting is more than just his best friend.summer of 1999, ziyi thought he could hold zhengting's hand forever.there's been so many summers after summer of 1999. ziyi still wonders what could have happenedif zhu zhengting didn't leave on the last day of summer of 1999would he be the man who's holding him right now? "
Relationships: Wang Ziyi/Zhu Zhengting | Jung Jung
Comments: 7
Kudos: 7
Collections: Cloud 9 Fic Fest





	summer of 1999

Ziyi watched as the clock ticked to a new line. Another minute closer to his birthday. 

It was 11:49 PM. He sat in the living room, grocery store cupcakes sat on the coffee table with him. The sky outside was painted black, a few stars danced in the faded sky. The low chirps of crickets outside his window created a stillness in the room so that Ziyi could close his eyes and pretend he was hovering in a field of flowers. The room was dismal, the only source of light coming from the lamp he got in the summer of 1999. 

Summer of 1999. It was euphoric, something like an awakened dream. A dream too beautiful yet sad, brief, but so everlasting that Ziyi could continue dreaming for an eternity. Eternity was what he wished he had with Zhu Zhengting. The summer was bare, nutshelled, and far too short. Wang Ziyi leaned forward and inserted the candle into the baked batter.

Being close to 12AM and another close step to turning twenty-four, Ziyi lit the candle, the fire igniting into a bittersweet red-orange. Only a minute until they’d be blown out into a puff of smoke. 

Until the clock struck 12, and the date on his calendar had moved forward. 

“Happy Birthday to me.” 

-Late June, 1999

The flowers inside the shop produced a sort of sickening but sweet aroma, one that Ziyi never minded. He loved the smells of flower shops, only ever having to be in one five days of the week. They welcomed dancing spirits into the room, a room that felt lively and colourful. Ziyi looked out the widely opened door into the lively street. The sky was coated a blue so impeccable that Ziyi refused to believe it was real. Feathery clouds floated in the sky following the path of the wind as they moved along gradually. It was such a perfect day. Ziyi smiled to himself unwaveringly, the corners of his lips pushing his eyes to fold into crescents. He was all too distracted and in a daze, too busy daydreaming to snap back to his senses.

Entirely until he felt the tap of someone’s finger on his shoulder, knocking him like a locked door. He spun around, a few pieces of black hair falling against his fluttery lashes. 

A pretty boy blocked his view, one with golden brown hair and eyes that held the universe. 

“Excuse me?” the boy asked, “do you guys have irises here?” 

Ziyi noticed the boy’s voice immediately. That soothing sound of vocal cords working together to create the perfect pitch, perfect tone all to fit the perfect boy. 

“Of course we do!” Ziyi squawked unexpectedly, mostly from the arising butterflies in his stomach. He hoped it didn’t scare the boy, but the boy didn’t seem to mind. 

He stared at Ziyi with a kind smile as he patiently waited for him to give directions. 

“Oh, uh, right here.” Ziyi pointed to an outbursting basket of purple flowers. irises. “Were you looking to make a bouquet?” 

The boy stared at him. His eyes had burned holes into Ziyi’s. “I was gonna buy some for my mom. It’s her birthday today.” 

“Oh, birthday? Okay, well, you can grab a few, and I’ll tie them up for you.” 

“Thank you.” 

Ziyi moved over to the cash register where they were supplied in the cabinets. He pulled out a pink ribbon, seeming like the colour pink suited the boy in the shop. “Is pink okay?” 

“Pink is actually my favourite colour,” the boy said with a smile. His eyes lit up at the piece of string as his fingers curled around the bunch of flowers in his hand. “Thank you.” 

The flowers were handed over to Ziyi as he placed them down on the table delicately. He glanced at the boy one more time before redirecting his gaze back onto the flowers. “Would you like to see some of our cards? My father makes them himself.” 

“Really?” The boy sauntered over to the wall of cards each having their own flower dried and imprinted on. 

Ziyi watched him from under his hair. The boy without a name had completely captivated Ziyi, had Ziyi’s eyes locked on him like a heavyweight. 

“Are these stable?” 

Ziyi jolted to his senses, hesitating before quickly saying, “yeah!” 

The latter smiled and walked back over to the cash register with a card in his hand. “This one and the irises.” 

Ziyi finally saw his face up close and god, it was painful. He could feel an overwhelming amount of heat rush up to his cheeks. He knew he was blushing and hoped it wasn’t too noticeable as he finished tying the flowers into a mini bouquet. The bouquet exploded with white, the edge of the petals fading into a dark purple. He stared at his work, thinking about how he normally doesn’t do half as good. When he rounded up the total, the thought suddenly hit him that he probably wouldn’t see the boy again. The thought made him freeze, finger halfway to hitting the “checkout” button. Then he remembered….

Stamps. 

“Hey, um,” Ziyi started, eyes darting toward the stamp box sitting on the shelf. “We have stamps if you wanted to add any to your card.” 

The boy blinked a few times before nodding slightly, the same dazed expression laid on his porcelain face. Ziyi reached out for the box, his fingertips grazing the lid with delicate care. His palms suddenly started feeling sweaty. “What’s your name?” Ziyi asked awkwardly when he opened up the box. Inside revealed a perfectly stacked row of alphabetical stamps and ink stashed in the corner. 

“Zhu Zhengting. Actually, you can just write Zhengting on it. Or Zhu Zhengting. Doesn’t matter.”

Zhengting carried a rather nervous aura with him, one Ziyi found to be strangely adorable. He imprinted the letters “Zhengting” on the card carefully. Each inked letter unraveling onto the sheet of paper. Ziyi etched on the last letter, tilting his head back to stare at the finished work. The name Zhengting created a desire of want much like Zhengting who was standing in front of him. Ziyi wanted to know his favourite things, whether he preferred Friday nights or Sunday mornings. He wanted to ask, all it took was a simple: “Hey, do you want to hang out sometime?” The words lingered in his throat, pounding to be let out. 

“Hey...” he said, hesitation heavy in his voice. “Hey, why do you like irises so much?” 

-Early July, 1999

“Ziyi? Why did you ask if I liked irises?” 

Ziyi turned his head to face Zhengting, raising a hand to block out his view from the blinding sunray. 

“What do you mean?” 

Zhengting placed his book down on the grass, positioning himself to sit in the cooler shade. 

“That day when I went to your dad’s flower shop, you asked me why I liked irises.” 

“Oh, that. That was a stupid question.” 

The truth was, Ziyi was too afraid to muster enough courage to ask Zhengting if he wanted to hang out. So, that day, he looked at the closest thing within reach from him. It just happened to be the irises Zhengting bought for his mom. When Ziyi asked Zhengting that question, he thought Zhengting would turn it down and leave. It wasn’t a particularly “weird” question given the situation. Just not one you’d ask strangers. 

“It wasn’t stupid. It was just… out of the blue?” 

Zhengting had stared at him after he had asked, large doe eyes gleaming like he’d just seen the edge of the world. And all while he looked like that, Ziyi stared at him waiting for an answer to escape his sultry lips. Him and Zhengting’s first meeting felt like ages ago. Although he took that as a good sign, something to show that him and Zhengting connected deeper than he may have thought. There wasn’t a lot Ziyi knew about Zhengting. He knew about some of his favourite things, but at the same time, he didn’t know him. And as much as he wanted to, he didn’t know if Zhengting wanted to open up. 

“You can probably expect that from me,” Ziyi told him, watching the sky carefully like it was going to crack. “I say things sometimes.” 

“Like what?” 

Ziyi shrugged. 

“Well, if it helps, I do that a lot too.” 

“I’m good at listening.” Without thinking, Ziyi had blurted out again. 

He wanted to smack himself, his fingers twitching in frustration at his sides. But Zhengting didn’t seem to mind. In fact, all he did was laugh gingerly. The sweet melody lingered in Ziyi’s ears for just a few seconds longer before he snapped back to his rightful senses. Zhengting never seemed to mind anything. Ziyi had turned his head around again after gaping at the clouds for so long. He blinked to regain his vision before the blurry silhouette of Zhengting became clear in front of him. 

Zhengting was so beautiful. It had been apparent since the day Ziyi saw him. He stared at Zhengting’s eyes, often finding himself in a trance from staring too long. There was a specific sadness to them, something about the way his eyelashes fell when he wasn’t focusing. And his lips. 

God, his lips. 

“Really? You’re good at listening?” 

Ziyi blinked once to focus. Zhengting cocked an arched eyebrow. 

“Yeah.”

“You seem to be in a daze a lot,” Zhengting stated. “Are you distracted by something?”

“I just like...looking at the clouds.” 

Zhengting snorted. “What’s so interesting about the clouds?” 

“I don’t know.” Ziyi’s eyes drifted back to the sky. “They’re weird.” 

“The universe is weird.” 

“Yeah. It is.” 

Beside him, Ziyi could hear Zhengting plopping down against the stubbly grass beside him. He could hear Zhengting sigh and imagined Zhengting had his eyes shut too. 

“The universe is weird but beautiful.” 

Ziyi only nodded, one particular response flooding his mind. He wanted to say it out loud, but he knew Zhengting wouldn’t be ready for it. There were a lot of things he wanted to say, a lot of things he wanted to give. And when he turned around again, Zhengting was gone, already halfway down the field they were at with his back turned towards Ziyi. 

Ziyi stared. He stared, and he stared, and he stared. 

“You’re quite like the universe, Zhu Zhengting.” 

-Mid July, 1999

Ziyi forced bits and bits of food down his throat as he swallowed a dumpling whole. 

“Ziyi, slow down there,” his mother scolded. “Why are you in such a hurry?” 

Why was he in such a hurry? Zhengting was waiting for him in the fields. The place he said he’d be at ten minutes ago. 

Ziyi swallowed his food, a large gulp sound escaping his throat. “I gotta go now, I’ll be back at eight!” 

With that, he sprinted from his seat while grabbing his backpack on the way. The fields weren’t far from his house. If he ran, he would make it in five minutes. By now, he assumed that the fields were just where they went. Like how friends had secret hideout places in movies. Ziyi had never thought much about secret hideouts. He’d never thought much about anything. 

He finally met the familiar tree at the start of the field, the green grass running in front of it. It ran into the horizon, and Ziyi always felt at ease. 

He could see the tip of Zhengting’s beat up converses. Almost like it was playing hide and seek behind the tree. Ziyi smiled to himself. He dove to the front of the tree, wanting to scare Zhengting before finding the boy’s eyes shut and caught in an intense dream. The sun casted a golden yellow, one that shone on Zhengting’s face like glycerin. Once again, Ziyi was caught in a daze, unable to move or speak. He merely observed quietly and didn’t dare move until Zhengting stirred, a groggy noise escaping his mouth. His eyes fluttered. Ziyi almost felt like holding his breath. 

“Hi,” Ziyi blurted, unable to think of anything else to say. 

Zhengting’s eyelids lifted slowly. “Ziyi?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Oh my gosh, you’re here.” Zhengting repositioned himself, leaning his back comfortably on the tree. “Come. Sit.” 

Ziyi took his usual spot beside Zhengting. “How long were you waiting?” 

“Not long. When did you get here?” 

“Like 10 seconds ago.”

“Oh. So perfect timing.” 

A serene silence fell over them, one where they both watched the bright orange sun settle beneath the edge of the field. Ziyi loved watching sunsets. The sun added an extra layer of vibrance to everything. The world was grey in Ziyi’s eyes, and the sun was the watercolour that’s painted over everything. 

“Sunsets or sunrises?” Zhengting suddenly asked, his eyes still deadpanned on the scenery. 

“Sunsets,” Ziyi said firmly. 

“Why?” 

“Because after the sun sets, it gets dark.”

“But why would you want it to be dark?” 

“I like watching the moon sometimes.” 

Zhengting scoffed. “The dark is so frightening. You never know what lurks in the dark.” 

“That’s why I like it.” 

Smiles spread across their faces. 

“Do you like the moon, Zhengting?” 

“I prefer the sun,” Zhengting said as he stared alluringly into the horizon.

He looked peaceful. Ziyi had stopped talking to give him space. An exotic feeling had arisen in him. Kind of like an odd fluid swarming his body. It was intoxicating but so sweet. A specific yearn for something. Someone. And he didn’t want anything more than to push it away. 

Because it came back every time he stared. Every time he’d glance a cast in Zhengting’s direction, at Zhengting’s porcelain glass face. 

“Ziyi, did you hear me?” 

_No, I didn’t, Zhengting. I couldn’t. You’re too distracting._

__Zhengting sighed, and for a second Ziyi thought he’d said that out loud._ _

__“Whatever, it’s not important anyway,” Zhengting added hurriedly, his eyes dropping sadly to the dirt he kicked up._ _

__Anything Zhengting said was important to Ziyi. Whether it was about the fruit flies swarming the trash cans or how much he loved the springtime._ _

__But Ziyi only nodded once again, all too afraid to say anything because of the unspoken bubble in his stomach; the lump in his throat; the lock on his lips._ _

__“I’m sorry for bringing you here. I probably interrupted you having dinner with your family.” Zhengting pulled at the grass beside him. “Sorry.”_ _

__“No,” Ziyi uttered suddenly. “No, don’t be sorry. I’m glad to be here.”_ _

__Zhengting stared at him hesitantly, a small wrinkle between his eyebrows._ _

__“I’m serious.”_ _

__“I kind of wish we never met, ZIyi,” Zhengting spoke, his voice barely above a mouse peep. “You’re kind of all I think about now.”_ _

__Ziyi wished now that he had responded in some way, some form, somehow. Ziyi wished he knew what to say. He wished he would stop being such a coward._ _

__Zhengting was beside him, and Ziyi wondered what would happen if he had just said all the words on his mind to him._ _

__

__-Late July, 1999_ _

__It was July 29th. The usual scorching temperature was a little higher than usual today._ _

__Ziyi and Zhengting sat by the bus stop, Ziyi waiting for the bus with Zhengting. The one Zhengting takes to get home. He tried licking the edge of his ice cream quickly as it dripped down his finger from the heat._ _

__“Just throw it out already. You’re gonna get sticky hands,” Zhengting scolded, a look of disgust imprinted on his face._ _

__“I spent money on this, I’m not throwing it out.”_ _

__Zhengting scoffed but still ended up smiling. He sat with his hands under his thighs despite the temperature, barely even sweating without any source of remedy to the heat. Ziyi wondered how he still looked good under the unforgivable sun. How his skin glew like glass with bits of hair pieces sticking to his forehead._ _

__Zhengting looked distracted like he was counting down seconds before a storm would hit._ _

__“Ziyi, your dad told me you had a girlfriend,” Zhengting said suddenly, his smile replaced with pursed lips in a matter of seconds._ _

__It was so out of the blue. Ziyi almost dropped his ice cream on the ground._ _

__Wenxin. That was her name. They met through Ziyi’s dad when he had introduced them a few months ago. Ziyi didn’t like her a whole lot. He thought she was a bit of a snob. Though he knew she didn’t like him either, how she wouldn’t even bother to hide the heaving text messages from other guys when they went on “dates.”_ _

__“Oh. Yeah. Her name is Wenxin.” Ziyi stopped eating his ice cream, pressing his lips into a thin line awkwardly._ _

__Zhengting nodded slowly, the kind of nod his mother gave whenever she looked at a bad score on a test he took._ _

__“Why didn’t you tell me?”_ _

__Ziyi’s now liquid in a cone was held halfway to his mouth before he stopped again. There was melted rocky road ice cream dripping halfway down his arm now. “I didn’t think it was important.”_ _

__“You don’t think your own girlfriend is important yet you wouldn’t stop going on and on about your favourite book series?”_ _

__“Wenxin and I, we barely talk anymore.”_ _

__Zhengting opened his mouth like he was about to say something else but instead, it turned into a sigh. “I just thought—”_ _

__“You thought what?”_ _

__Zhengting shook his head, swishing his hair away from poking his eyelashes. “Nevermind.”_ _

__“What, Zhengting?” Ziyi had forgotten about the ice cream in his hand. “Why are you getting mad at me?”_ _

__“I’m not mad! I—” Zhengting shut his eyes for a second to calm himself before opening them again. “I’m not mad.”_ _

__A sort of tensed silence fell over them as Ziyi stared at the ground pointlessly, counting the amount of droplets that had fallen at the tip of his shoes. All the while Zhengting looked the other way, away from Ziyi. Ziyi wanted to say something. Only problem was; he didn’t know what to say. He never knew what to say. And Zhengting seemed to have noticed that ages ago when he asked,_ _

__“How come you never say anything?”_ _

__“Why do I have to?”_ _

__Ziyi hadn’t expected that to slip out so easily. Out of everything he could’ve said instead, out of everything. It had to be that._ _

__He regretted it as soon as he said it, about to apologize before Zhengting spoke up again._ _

__“You don’t have to. I’m just asking.”_ _

__“Zhengting, I—” Ziyi sighed quietly. “I don’t know what to say.”_ _

__Zhengting stayed silent, and Ziyi could already tell from the look on his face that he was thinking: “You never do.” It was all too silent before the bus pulled up to a screeching halt as Ziyi suddenly found this conversation had happened all too fast. Unfinished. That’s what it felt like. And until Ziyi resolved whatever had just happened now, he wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about it once he got home._ _

__“Wait,” Ziyi uttered as Zhengting got up to leave. “Are you still coming tomorrow?”_ _

__“Why wouldn’t I be?” Zhengting asked as if nothing happened. As if nothing had been talked about._ _

__“Okay,” Ziyi responded, unsure of what else to say. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”_ _

__Zhengting didn’t say anything else and turned around to leave as he boarded the bus. When the bus left and Zhengting was no longer by Ziyi, Ziyi threw his ice cream out and headed home._ _

__-_ _

__When Ziyi woke up the next morning, Zhengting was the first thing he thought about. The first face, first name, first anything to enter his mind. Then everything that happened the previous day came along. He replayed the conversations they had yesterday while taking a shower._ _

__He worked the entire morning and afternoon at his dad’s flower shop. Nothing special, nothing peculiar. All day while he worked, he stared at the clock every few minutes to check the time. To check how many more hours until he’d be with Zhengting again. And when the clock finally struck 5:00, he headed home with his father as they closed the shop up together._ _

__At 5:30, he was at the dinner table scooping hoards of food on his plate before draining them like a vacuum. His mother scolded him, then she asked when Zhengting was coming over. Ziyi told her he didn’t know which was why he had to finish quickly. His mother laughed at that. His father didn’t._ _

__At 6:00, they finished dinner and while Ziyi’s parents were doing the dishes in the kitchen, Ziyi was tidying up the living room. He placed the pillows properly on the couch and brought some coffee mugs back over to the kitchen. The doorbell rang right when he was walking back to the living room._ _

__“Ziyi, get the door!” his mother shouted. But Ziyi was already racing towards it, straightening out his shirt before swinging the door open._ _

__Seeing Zhengting stand in his doorway with a backpack slung over his shoulder and frizzy hair like he rushed to get here was a relief to say the least. It felt right. Ziyi didn’t exactly know what that meant or felt like. It just felt right._ _

__“Hey, Zhengting!” he greeted, worried that it came off too dorky and confused as to why he was so nervous about Zhengting coming over to his house. “Come in.”_ _

__Zhengting smiled before stepping through the door, head first for a peek before the rest of his body followed._ _

__“Your house is so nice,” he exclaimed, eyes wandering all over the place as Ziyi sweated and picked out all the flaws he just noticed about his own home. “It reminds me of a forest. Kind of. With all the green and brown.”_ _

__“Thank you?” Ziyi didn’t know what that meant as he never thought much about his house. “My mom and dad are leaving soon so it’ll just be us.”_ _

__Ziyi wanted to ram his head into a wall for saying that._ _

__“Should I leave my shoes here?” Zhengting asked unfazingly._ _

__“Uh, yeah, sure.”_ _

__Ziyi wiped his sweaty palms against the back of his jeans. God, why was he so nervous? It was only Zhengting after all. But holy lord, it was Zhengting. Zhu Zhengting was in his home. Right now._ _

__“Do you wanna go upstairs? I can show you my room, if you want.” Ziyi tried playing his nervousness off._ _

__“Sure,” Zhengting responded cheerfully and left his backpack by the door. “Lead the way.”_ _

__-_ _

__If time had stopped ticking and everything froze, Ziyi could stare at Zhengting like this forever._ _

__Zhengting, just being his regular self which was already too much for Ziyi to handle, sat on top of Ziyi’s bed across from him. Nevermind all the clothes on the floor that Ziyi forgot he had left there. He knew the staring would start getting weird if he stared for too long. Luckily, Zhengting was busy counting all the pictures on his wall._ _

__Ziyi wanted to talk to him about yesterday. The unspoken words he wanted to say. He knew Zhengting wanted to say more than what he did too but ended up leaving it empty to avoid conflict. Most of all, Ziyi wanted to apologize._ _

__“Your posters are so cool,” Zhengting exclaimed after admiring them for what felt like ages. “I wish my parents would let me put posters in my room. They said it’d ruin the paint on the walls.”_ _

__“Having posters isn’t that cool. You sort of get bored of them after a while.” Ziyi leaned back on his bed to stare at them, trying to find what was so special._ _

__“You should come over sometime,” Zhengting suggested. “But my room definitely isn’t as cool as yours.”_ _

__“Why? Because it’s cooler?”_ _

__Zhengting laughed and rolled his eyes. “That’s not what I meant.”_ _

__Ziyi chuckled to himself as the atmosphere began to quiet down. He could tell Zhengting had something else to say too but wasn’t saying it. Normally, Zhengting just rambled on about whatever and Ziyi would listen. Sometimes Ziyi would say something too. Sometimes he wouldn’t._ _

__“Will you—”_ _

__“I’m—”_ _

__They both said different things at the same time causing the two to burst into awkward giggles as they stared at each other._ _

__“Go first,” Ziyi urged._ _

__“No, you go first.”_ _

__“I’m serious, Zhengting, what were you about to say?”_ _

__“I’m serious too, Ziyi.”_ _

__Then almost as if time really did stop completely, even if it was just for a split second, Ziyi stared longingly into Zhengting’s dark umber eyes as Zhengting stared into his. If only time had stopped because Zhengting looked away too soon._ _

__“What did you want to say, Ziyi?” he asked, almost shyly with a voice so soft and delicate and breakable._ _

__“I—” Ziyi forgot what he wanted to ask._ _

__“Did you forget?” almost like Zhengitng had read his mind, he let out a quiet laugh._ _

__“Yeah, I really did forget. What were you going to say?”_ _

__“I just wanted to apologize.” Zhengting shifted slightly on Ziyi’s bed, something he did whenever he was slightly uncomfortable. “I came off as intrusive yesterday, but I promise I didn’t mean to seem like I was invading your privacy. Your girlfriend sounds like a lovely person even though you said that—”_ _

__Ziyi didn’t know what he did until he realized he was actually doing. Until he finally fell back into his senses when he felt Zhengting’s lips on his. Which had tasted like a raspberry slushie and summer days, like Zhengting who had his fingers clutched around the fabric of Ziyi’s shirt, pressing his lips onto Ziyi’s as if he was gasping for air._ _

__And Ziyi wouldn’t rather be anywhere else right now, wouldn’t rather be doing anything else, wouldn’t rather be _kissing _anyone else. In his mind, he was lost at sea, Zhengting being the only lifeline. All because Zhengting smelled like the ocean and felt like the world. His world.___ _

____Until he felt the hand that’d been pulling him closer push him back. Until he saw Zhengting, eyes wide and lips red in front of him. Until he finally realized what he had just done._ _ _ _

____“Ziyi, I can’t— we can’t do this. You have a girlfriend,” Zhengting began, slightly out of breath with a hand hovering over his mouth._ _ _ _

____“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—”_ _ _ _

____Ziyi couldn’t even finish his sentence when he felt warmth again. The feeling of waves crashing against shore. The feeling of finding his place on Zhengting’s lips and finally feeling at ease._ _ _ _

____Just for a second, a whirl of time, Zhengting was all there was to this world._ _ _ _

____Ziyi never cared much for love or relationships or how any of that worked. All he ever knew was a man like him would find a beautiful woman, and they’d get married eventually. All he ever knew was that love wasn’t actually real because feelings were ridiculous._ _ _ _

____That is, feelings are ridiculous until it comes to Zhu Zhengting._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____-Mid August, 1999_ _ _ _

____Things haven’t exactly been the same since Ziyi kissed Zhengting._ _ _ _

____They’ve been hanging out like usual, the days spent bored in the fields or in Ziyi’s bedroom. It sure didn’t help a lot that now whenever Ziyi looked at Zhengting, all he could think about were the taste of his lips._ _ _ _

____“Have you ever kissed a boy before?” Zhengting asked on a quiet afternoon._ _ _ _

____He had been reading magazines upside down on the edge of Ziyi’s bed while Ziyi sat in front of the fan to take a break from the warm temperature in his room._ _ _ _

____When Zhengting asked, Ziyi didn’t think he heard correctly at first. Until Zhengting repeated his question, setting down the magazine he was reading by the windowsill._ _ _ _

____“You’re a boy, aren’t you?” Ziyi asked, feeling a sudden rush of confidence when he teased Zhengting like that._ _ _ _

____Zhengting rolled his eyes. “I mean other than me.”_ _ _ _

____Ziyi sat back and stared at the ceiling. He’d never really kissed anyone before. “No… have you?”_ _ _ _

____Zhengting shook his head, poking the tip of his tongue out from pouty lips._ _ _ _

____“Okay.” Ziyi nodded slowly. “Have you kissed anyone else before?”_ _ _ _

____Thinking for a second, Zhengting shrugged. “I’ve kissed a girl in my class before, but that was in eighth grade and at a school dance.”_ _ _ _

____The fan was starting to dry out Ziyi’s lips so he moved out of its way and sat on his bed instead._ _ _ _

____“Have you?” Zhengting asked._ _ _ _

____“Hm.” Ziyi thought back to the time he had tried to kiss Wenxin. She told him “gross” after and left. She didn’t speak to him for two weeks straight. “Yeah, but it was weird.”_ _ _ _

____“First kisses are weird.”_ _ _ _

____Ziyi nodded to agree._ _ _ _

____There was still a little under a month leftover of summer, and Ziyi was dreading school already. Especially after he had met Zhengting. Zhengting made his summer feel like no other. Ziyi finally understood the true meaning of time flying by. Time really did fly by with Zhengting. But it also felt like it didn’t move._ _ _ _

____“I wish my first kiss was with you,” Zhengting suddenly said._ _ _ _

____Ziyi stared at him, but Zhengting seemed to be completely unfazed. “Why?” Ziyi mustered, only realizing how stupid it sounded after he said it._ _ _ _

____“Why not?”_ _ _ _

____“Well, I don’t know. I guess it’s kind of hard to believe that someone would actually want to kiss me.”_ _ _ _

____Zhengting’s head tilted like he didn’t understand._ _ _ _

____“Well, I’m weird. That’s one. And I never know what to say, so that sweet small talk before a kiss wouldn’t go by very smoothly.”_ _ _ _

____“So? Not everything has to be perfect.” Zhengting scooched so that he was sitting beside Ziyi, their thighs brushing against each other. “Besides, I wanted to kiss you. Still do.”_ _ _ _

____Everything that comes out of Zhengting’s mouth still surprises Ziyi day by day._ _ _ _

____“Even if no one else does, I do.”_ _ _ _

____“Zhengting, you’re relentless. You’re gonna break my heart one day.”_ _ _ _

____Zhengting didn’t respond and stared at fidgeting fingers by his stomach. Suddenly pushing himself off the bed and crawling over Ziyi's set of long legs, Zhengting stood up and grabbed his backpack off the floor._ _ _ _

____“Let’s go do something, Ziyi,” he suggested._ _ _ _

____Not knowing what exactly Zhengting had planned, Ziyi stayed put in his spot. “Like what?”_ _ _ _

____“I don’t know, like, watch the moon or something?”_ _ _ _

____Ziyi looked out the window. “It’s not even dark yet.”_ _ _ _

____“It’ll get dark soon.” Zhengting waited by the door, bouncing lightly on his toes. “Please, Ziyi, didn’t you say you liked watching the moon?”_ _ _ _

____“I do, but…” Ziyi’s voice fell into a soft sigh, not really knowing what’s holding him back._ _ _ _

____“Please,” Zhengting pleaded again, his voice sounding like it would break into a countless number of pieces. “Just this one time. For me.”_ _ _ _

____-_ _ _ _

____They huddled closer for warmth although it wasn’t cold out. They both needed each other’s warmth, the comforting feeling of their spirits beside each other. Around each other._ _ _ _

____Ziyi didn’t know what time it was, didn’t care what time it was._ _ _ _

____“You’re like the seven wonders of the world.”_ _ _ _

____Ziyi and Zhengting. Two boys sharing Ziyi’s jacket and sitting under a large oak tree, watching the moon hover in the night sky. The stars collided along with their rightful senses._ _ _ _

____They were like Astro twins, unable to part from each other. Ziyi held Zhengting like he was his, like Zhengting was everything there was to him. His chin brushed back and forth against Zhengting’s soft locks, his arms wrapped around his waist._ _ _ _

____“I lied, Ziyi. I think I like watching the moon better.”_ _ _ _

____Ziyi laughed and placed a gentle kiss on the bare skin of Zhengting’s shoulder. “I wish we could stay like this forever.”_ _ _ _

____Zhengting shifted slightly, his eyes still spotlighted on the moon._ _ _ _

____“Why isn’t there a way to stop time, Zhengting? Why can’t time be stopped?”_ _ _ _

____“Maybe there will be a way in thirty years.”_ _ _ _

____“I hope I’m still with you in thirty years.” Ziyi wrapped his hands tighter around Zhengting’s. “I wish we could’ve met earlier. Maybe when we were little kids, or at least the summer before.”_ _ _ _

____“But, Ziyi,” Zhengting started. “But what if we were destined to meet later? Maybe this was the universe’s gift to us. This summer. The summer of 1999.”_ _ _ _

____Zhengting curled his fingers around Ziyi and squeezed them. Ziyi pulled him impossibly closer._ _ _ _

____“I wouldn’t rather have met you at any different time, any different place, or any different life. You came at the right moment in my life, and you’ll leave at the right moment too.”_ _ _ _

____“I just hope that isn’t too soon.”_ _ _ _

____Zhengting shut his eyes, wanting to fall asleep peacefully and never wake up. “Even if it is, it’s still the right time. We had this summer, and there’ll be other summers too. Maybe not spent with each other, but we’ll always keep this one summer as just an extra something.”_ _ _ _

____Without much thought to it, Ziyi nodded, resting his chin on Zhengting’s head._ _ _ _

____And if only he knew that night would’ve been the last time he could ever hold Zhengting like that again. He never would’ve let go._ _ _ _


End file.
